For each child, I've found a little journal to complete together in first grade. Originally, I thought it would work well because the child would be just learning to write and the journal would encourage development of the skill, but none of my children were proficient at handwriting in first grade (and at least the first two can write adequately when they so desire). In the end, it was a journal for which the child answered and the parent wrote. It still turned out to be a fabulous way to add a little silliness and fun to our lessons, to learn some of the thoughts floating around in a first grader's head, and to record some memories.
Because this review got lost at the bottom of my draft posts, it's a little behind it's time. Life, According to Me is the journal I selected for Second Daughter who finished first grade in 2016. The pages are cute with fun colors and styles. Each page has a different prompt for the child like:
- My favorite thing to wear is...
- When I wake in the morning I...
- One thing I am excited about for the future is...
Here is what the first day of school was like for me..."The first day of school was like a thousand years ago. I can't remember. I can't possibly remember it." (in April)
If I had a million dollars, I would..."use $54 to buy another Frosty and $100 to buy more stuffed animals, $50 to everyone in my family and all my relations. Then I would give all the rest to the poor."
The most famous person I've met is..."the Cat.Chat family and I shook Moses's hand."
Something most people don't know about me is..."my favorite color is blue and I'm good at making LEGO speeders." [Now everyone knows.]
Each page also had two spaces for the child to write notes, showing "to" and "from." We were never really sure what to do with those. Sometimes Second Daughter would dictate a note to herself or others, but most of the time we left those blank.I think it's a nice record of who Second Daughter was in first grade and some of her thoughts, but overall it would have worked better for my 9 year old (who really wanted to use it).
I liked First Daughter's book better for the first grade project than this one. She used All About Me! which I was delighted to find once at a library book sale. I actually remember filling out the same book when I was a girl. It's tricky to buy these kinds of things used online, though, since you might end up with a book that's already been completed.First Son used My Book About Me which he loved. It involves a lot less thoughtfulness and significantly more silliness than Life, According to Me and would definitely be a better choice for a boy.
